*REVIEW* YASMIN KARIMI ENHANCING HAIR GROWTH HAIR OIL

Recently (or for about a year at least)I had the chance to buy and test out the Yasmin Karimi Hair Oils.

Many of you won't have heard of this brand as it is relatively niche. It is named after its founder; I heard of her via her appearance on the short-lived Desi Rascals which aired on Sky TV.

Yasmin herself came across as quite friendly and I thought I'd give her products a whirl since my hair is a sight to behold :/ and Yasmin has amazing hair, a testament to her products!

She has many oils in her range, for different types of hair needs, whether that is Hair Regrowth, to Minimizing hair Loss, Frizz Control and many many others.

Her latest addition to her mighty successful hair oils range was the Cleansers and Conditioners. I can't comment on these as I haven't tried them personally.

The oil I bought was the Enhancing Hair Growth Oil, which on application had the most amazing scent, almost like vanilla meets freshness! That doesn't make sense but the scents aren't as disgusting as the Farsali Volcanic Elixir basically. Nor does the oil sit too heavy on the hair which is always great especially for me who has fine and flat hair!

Since using the oil, I have noticed it drops out less and has much more bounce and life. The oils themselves retail at £60.00 for 50ml which on the face it of it seems way way too expensive. But I don't think this is a low-end oil, it is marketed as a luxury hair oil and the packaging of the product itself reflects this.

The oil itself which seems like you'll use up within a month is actually quite long lasting. Not in terms of application on hair but basically you won't finish it within a month!

The hair oils are comprised of a mixture of many hair oils, some you've heard of and some you won't have!! My only qualm is that the text on the label rubs after a while, which is annoying but you can always go back to the website to have a look at the list of ingredients.

You use about for half droppers worth and it does the job! The dropper is provided by the way so you don't have to tip the bottle which is how it seems from the images on the website. Also folks please try not to tip the bottle, the mess is unforgivable!

Yasmin always has great offers and discount codes available on her products, she's really passionate about hair and is always wiling to answer questions and offer tips on her SnapChat. If you find her on Instagram under her name you will also find her on SnapChat.

I definitely have enjoyed using the hair oil and will definitely repurchase when my current bottle runs out!

Yasmin has also announced that she will be launching a range of facial oils (snce writing this these have already launched and the range extensively extended) which I am quite excited about. Having had a disaster with the curry smelling Farsali, I can only expect better things from Yasmin following the success of her beautifully scented hair oils.

Yasmin's products can be bought directly from her website: www.yasminkarimi.com

Ciao for now xx

*BOBBI BROWN* LIPSTICK COLLECTION

Hello again

I'm aware my last blog was very 'venty' so I'm veering away from that vibe and doing what I do best, Makeup blogs!

Anyway, I recently purchased the 25th anniversary Bobbi Brown 10 Bestseller Lipstick Collection.

If you're anyone who knows me, you know (much to my husband's dismay) that I am obsessed with lipstick. I hadn't till this point bought a BB lipstick and was happy to see this mini lipstick collection launch. Especially since they were her bestsellers!

Now as said, these are minis, hence the price tag of £80. But to be fair, who really finishes any lipstick? I have inserted below a few pictures of the lipsticks which are stunning. They come in a leather box, which has a maroon velvet lined interior which is luxurious in itself.  Inside the box, is a laminated card which has a photo of all ten lipsticks (see photo below) with the colours explained.

I saw these advertised on Facebook, and immediately jumped on the bandwagon. I bought these directly off the BB website as she does some great deluxe sample give-aways as well as daily changing offers which you can apply to your order too. I got so many freebies with my order it was great! So I would recommend purchasing directly from the BB website. Delivery is free too.

However there is no loyalty scheme with the Bobbi Brown website so right about now Debenhams have their Christmas Spectacular event where they have 10% off beauty for Loyalty customers. However if you do register with BB, you can subscribe to the newsletter which has offers on all the time.

Anyway, moving on  to the lipsticks, they are tiny enough to not take up to much space in a little clutch bag when on an evening out and aren't too small where you feel you've been robbed for your money.

As advertised these lipsticks are mini versions of Bobbi's main lipstick line. They're not matt, or sheer in application. They sit in the middle and leave a semi matt finish.  A full sized version of the lipsticks costs around £24.00. In this collection you get 10 mini lipsticks at 2grams each, I believe the full sized lipsticks are 3.2grams each. So you're getting more than half of the original product.

The lipsticks are long lasting and leave your lips quite moisturised. I am very happy with my purchase and believe this would make a lovely Christmas/birthday present for anyone. I believe the collection is limited edition so get it whilst stocks last.

The colours are a good mix of reds, nudes, browns, pinks and oranges. A good variation in my opinion and if you do find a colour you'll never wear, mix it with another colour or give it away! Simples.

I have also swatched the colours on my arm, not the best of lights but you get the picture.

Anyway guys, I'll see you in my next one.

Cheerio!

The lameness of Maria B

Hi all

Long time no blog.

I have been quite busy lately, getting married and adapting to  married life and all the challenges it brings, and the challenges are aplenty.

I've upped my shopping with regards to asian clothes, it seems everything you wear is put under a microscope so it has to be perfect. Now for a girl who used to more or less wear pyjamas on weekends and basic wear on weekdays after work this is a task and a half.

I see what people mean when they say its better being single....SOMETIMES. Anyway I recently bought an outfit from the Maria B Pakistan website and received delivery of my purchase via the post 3-5 days later which was amazing!
However the clothes themselves which on the website appeared somewhat OK for home wear were horrendous when delivered. The black kameez was as described, however the main feature being the tulip shalwar was far from good. It was, I imagine once a black colour but because of exposure to too much sun or being left to rot in the warehouse had lost the colour and looked almost brown in light. So the two pieces didn't go together well at all.

Now when you've paid a fair bit of money on a brand you supposedly trust this is highly disappointing, I have emailed Maria B customer services but I'm not very hopeful I'll get a satisfactory response from them.

It is now 1 week since my email and still no response. I think we can safely say some Pakistani designers are ust after your money, customer service be damned!

Contouring Tips & Products

Hi guys

I know most of you probably have heard of the term contouring by now. Anyone who knows Kim K will concur with that fact!

Anyway I wanted to share with you an item I have been extensively using to contour. I’ve recently realised that my actual foundation doesn’t match my skintone *covered monkey face*. What a rookie mistake. I am so in love with the foundation formula itself I forgot to check it actually matched my neck colour etc etc.

Anyway that’s a blog for another time. I have used many items to contour in my time. I mainly concentrate the contour underneath my cheekbones, but on YouTube you’ll see girls (and guys) contouring to the extreme. Unless it’s a special occasion or you just love sculpted, chiselled cheekbones; a natural contour can still be achieved without looking streaky or caked.

I’ve gone through cream formulations and powder and to be honest I use both. When in I’m a rush I reach for my Bourjois Bronzing powder to set my Becca Radiant Skin Satin Foundation in the Colour Mink. This is more of a liquid formula but I cheat and use a foundation instead of a normal creamy contour.

But whatever you use it’s important you use the correct technique regardless of the colour. As long as the colour is a few shades darker than your own skintone you’re good to go.

I use the Becca foundation because it just blends seamlessly into the skin, doesn’t leave streaks and it’s so easy to work with. A little goes a long way. I bought it in the Space NK sale; it must have been a colour people weren’t buying often so it was mega reduced to like £3.00 or something ridiculous. I understand normally it’s around the £20.00 – £25.00 mark.

I am not a great at advising how to contour, so I suggest you watch beauty bloggers on YouTube as it’s become almost a part of nearly everyone’s routine as part of a regular tutorial.

There are so many contouring products out there, when I first started out, I had to get my head round the idea that most makeup companies don’t actually product special contour products, its mostly bronzers and mattified powders. However here is a list of some common ones:

Laura Mercier Contour Kit - £34.00
Mac Mineralise Skinfinish Natural - £24.00
Anastasia Beverley Hills Cream and Powder Contour Kit - £39.00
Tom Ford Shade & Illuminate, Cream – I have a blog about this.

The Bourjois setting bronzing powder I use is under £10 from Boots and I think it’s just one universal colour as oppose to different shades. It is also available in different variations; it can come with a highlighting powder or with two blocks of bronzer and its packaging is pretty neat too.

And remember, if you ‘over contour’ you can always just go over it all with a little bit of your regular foundation and start again. Also if you have amazing contoured cheeks already why are you bothering??!!

Hehe we all love a bit of contour!

Ciao for now

*REVIEW* LA Girl Pro HD Concealers

Hi guys

I feel like I've completely abandoned my blog of late. I am so lame, I blame my short attention span for my lameness.

Anyhow you're not here to read about my incessant lameness, you're here to read about my take on all things beauty.

Today I'm talking about the LA Girl Pro HD Concealer. This is a concealer like no other. Incredibly affordable, super full coverage and it doesn't budge!!! 

I have been pretty lazy with concealer and just using the one that came with my foundation. I was using the Mac Moisture Mineralise concealer for an age...I wasn't as happy with it as the foundation as it just sat in my lines and was just, too light coverage. 

So I decided to experiment, I've seen other bloggers go on and on about this concealer and saw it mentioned on a friends Snapchat recently which prompted me to buy my own. Now I couldn't be bothered paying shipping costs at places so I just bought my tube off of EBay, the seller is called jewelry_fantastic135...

I know the name sounds dim and dodgy, but the products are far from it. I bought two shades to find my true match and then another for contouring purposes. They were £3.44 each which is great to be honest. 

The shades I bought were Fawn, Warm Honey and Chestnut. Fawn was too dark and Chestnut was my contour colour, however Warm Honey matched perfectly.

I find with these concealers you don't need much to conceal, a little goes a long way. It has a brush applicator which looks convenient at first but in time would be a cesspit of disease, so I steer clear of using it and apply the product on the back of my hand and use a brush to apply.

Also guys, if your looking for stiff packaging or if you're expecting what you're used to with the high end brands, don't! You're getting what you're paying for here, the packaging is cheap and functional.

I also found with these that they don't require powder to set, which is convenient because I hate powdering, bane of my existence. 

You don't have to purchase a few shades to get your perfect match if you don't want, do some research look online at swatches and compare. I'm NC42 skin tone and Warm Honey went perfectly.

So yeah, go check it out, I'm sure there are official stockists somewhere but hey at eBay shipping was free hehehe.

See you soon x

*REVIEW* FREEDOM MAKEUP LONDON

Hi guys

It’s been a while and I want to apologise. But there’s no point dwelling on it.
I have recently bought and tested a completely unknown brand, more on the cheaper side of things and an impulse purchase on my part.

The FREEDOM make up brand must be totally new as I’ve never heard of it before and only came across it in Superdrug in one of those paper pop up stands.

I was in there looking to buy a replacement to my current Soap and Glory eyebrow pencil which is a great dupe for the Anastasia Beverley Hills Eye Brow Whiz, but anyway…couldn’t find a Soap and Glory bit in there (must only be in Boots maybe?).

So this stand contained eye brow products, palettes (which really r a waste unless you’re an MUA or like mixing colours).  I found a great dupe for the Anastasia Beverley Hills Eye Brow Pomade. It was only a fiver compared to the 15 quid you pay online for ABH.
I can personally vouch that this product lasts all day, once applied (using an angled brush, because really you can’t apply with fingers) the finish is amazing and looks perfectly natural and makes your brows look much thicker than when using a pencil.

I got it in the colour Chocolate, but they had a whole range of different colours and I had a very messy hand at the end of all the swatching, which is always fun to clean :/

So I’d advise anyone looking to purchase a new product to give this one a go and let me know your thoughts….

Animas x

SKINCARE REVIEW - Farsali Elixir Hydrating Moisturiser

Hi guys

I am lame blogger, I get so wrapped up with the busy workings of my life that i forget that I have a following and people eagerly anticipating my next blog post/review.

Let me sort this.....today I will be blogging about the about the Farsali Volcanic Elixir!!

Now I don't think I have read a single bad review about this product anywhere on the tinterweb...however there's always a first which subsequently allows for floodgates to be opened...

Let me start by introducing this product as I appreciate many of you won't have heard of it as yet...Farsali is a brand owned and developed by married couple Farah and Sali ( I have no idea what his full name is tbh) they are you tubers and Farah has amassed a great following on her extremely popular beauty channel @farahdhukai.

I have to admit she is brilliant, she's not just someone who picked up makeup and learnt to do it on herself amazingly, but she's done her research and she knows product inside out. From the health benefits all the way down to the ingredients that go into the makeup products we know and love.

So when I heard she was launching her own skincare range I was genuinely excited. The Elixir was released late last year as far as I understand. It is a moisturising oil that is to be used on a daily basis in place of a regular moisturising cream.

It is dispensed using a pipette style dispenser and the oil itself is yellow in colour and has a cream like consistency, what you'd expect from your typical oil.

I bought it online as UK shipping was limited but I considered myself one of those lucky few to get my hands on some bottles. I think one bottle costs around £30 and can be purchased from the Farsali website which can be found on the @Farsali Instagram page.

Having bought this and tried it for a few days, I felt like it made my face itch a lot, it also emanated the most hideous smell. Now I'm Asian and we eat curry on a daily basis, but no way in hell do I like that smell on my face everyday.

Unfortunately I had to relegate the oil to night time use but even then I wasn't seeing much skincare benefits, my regular moisturiser wasn't itchy and provided excellent hydration with no fragrance. Now when I queried the fragrance situation with Farsali customer services I was told this was the natural fragrance of the oil as it is completely organic. However no other review has mentioned this...which surprised me.

To test that it wasn't just me I asked a few other people to try it and they agreed with me, there was definitely a distinct smell which made the product lose a lot of value.

So all in all, if you don't mind the distinct smell of curry and you have money to burn then go ahead buy this product, otherwise there are better and cheaper alternatives in the market.

Ciao for now